The Smurfs are blue, but the producers are probably downright depressed.
The Smurfs, set to come out in theaters on Friday, received a 18% rating on the movie critic website, Rotten Tomatoes. (Though the rating constantly changes, it was at 0% as recently as Thursday.)
The live action/animated film has its fair share of big stars to match the small dwarf-like creatures, including Neil Patrick Harris, George Lopez, Jeff Foxworthy, Jayma Mays and Katy Perry. But even their presence both on-screen and at the microphone couldn’t appease the critics, who carried decomposing vegetables in hand.
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The film was intended to be a nostalgic look back for adults on childhood memories as well as a fun time for kids, but it may have only achieved the latter.
“Actual kids may find this fun, but for adults, watching The Smurfs may feel a little too much like trying to wrangle an overcrowded kiddie birthday party,” Tasha Robinson of The AV Club said.
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There is one bright side, according to one still-displeased critic.
“Its sole claim to fame may turn out to be as the most slyly foul-mouthed children’s film yet made,” Catharine Shoard of the Guardian noted. See? It wasn’t that smurfin’ bad after all!
Zachary Cohen is a contributor for TIME. Find him on Twitter at @Zachary_Cohen. You can also continue the discussion on TIME‘s Facebook page and on Twitter at @TIME.
